The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-06-19
MINOR MENTION.

Q6mO1SLr2tlOQS,
been thoroughly investigated and exposed as
| it is in report just published. This report is
| by committee known the Seybert Spiritual
| Commission. Mr.. Henry eybertwas wealthy
| and wellknown citizen of PHILADELPHIA who
| died In that city about four years ago. Late in
| life he became believer in spirtualism, and in
| his will he bequeathed $50, 900 for the mainte-
nance Of a chair Of spiritualism in the University
| of Pennsylvania, provided that before the chair
| should be established committee of competent
| persons should be appointed to investigate and
report on the subject. The committee
| pointed about three years ago. and was COM
posed Of some of the best known scholars and
| scientists in Philadelphia. Horace Howard Fur
| ness, the famous Shakspearian scholar, who Is
also a trustee of the University of Pennsylvania,
| was made acting chairman. and DR.. William
| Pepper, provost of the university and professor
| of the practice of medicine, became chairman by
| virtue of his Office. The other members of the
| commission Joseph Leidy. the eminent
| anatomist and naturalist; George a Koenig,
professor of chemistry in the University; George
S. Fullerton. professor of intellectual and moral
| philosophy; Robert Ellis Thompson, professor Of
4 history and English literature; Coleman Sellers.
| well known civil engineer; James W. White,
| editor of Dental Cosmos. the leading dental
| journal of the country, and director of
| public charities and correction; DIR. Calvin B.
Kneer and Dr. S. Weir Mitchell. The investiga-
1 ton has been conducted quietly but very thor
oughly. and has included practical tests of the
| most celebrated mediums" in the country.
| The report of the commission is unanimous to
| the effect that all the demonstrations they have
| been able to were a clumsy fraud. and as
| result of their conclusion the Seybert bequest
| will not be used.
| THERE has been q good deal said in regard to
| the right of policemen to revolvers and the
| circumstances under which the right may be
| safely exercised That it is often abused cannot
| be denied. The abuse sometimes springs from
| ignorance, sometimes from recklessness or undue
| excitement and lack Of self-control. Some rules
on the subject have recently been published in
| tho Cincinnati Police Manual which, being
| founded on general principles Of law equally
| applicable here. The rules were prepared by q
| committee of prominent attorneys
| IS. No one. be he private citizen off,
Ger of the law can avail himself of the doctrine
| Of self-defense. nor is he justified in taking
human life, unless he is first attacked, and when
attacked is in reasonable fear of death great
| bodily harm. Either must exist to make the
| killing justfable homicide.
| 49, Mere threats made by a party will not
cuse the taking of human life, but there must be
| an actual violent act committed before an officer
is justified to repel an assault by force; and such
| officer must establish. by a preponderence OF
evidence, that he was in reasonable fear of death
| or great bodily harm.
| attempts to arrest person charged with MIS-
| DEMEANoR, or the violation of a city ordinance
| and tho person fly from the arrest, the officer
| has NO RIGHT TO SHOOT at the escaping person,
| though he cannot otherwise be overtaken.
| ia II an officer, with without a warrant
| ATTEMPTS TO ARREST person charged with
| FELONY and the person FLY FROM THE ARREST
the officer HAS RIGHT TO SHOOT at the escap-
ing person, IF HE CAN IN NO OTHER WAY BE
| TAKEN.
"15. If an officer has lawfully arrested a per-
| son charged with any ofense. and the arrested
| person endeavors to break away or ressts, the
| officer may repel force with force, and need not
| give back; and if the arrested person is unavoid
ably killed in the struggle, by the officer. the
| killing Is Unsuitable"
| THE Boston School Board has undertaken a
| very practical reform, and one which observers
| of public-school methods have long thought de-
| sirable. It is nothing less than a change in the
| methods of teaching arithmetic and decided
| reduction Of the time devoted to that study in
| tho lower grades 1t has been resolved to re-
strict the arithnetcal work to small numbers,
simple subjects and processes, the purpose being
not to encourage skill in the elucidation of puz-
| zling problems, but ito a reasonable
degree of facility in plain, ordinary ciphering"
| The mensuraton Of the trapezoid and of the
trapezium, of the prism, pyramid, cone and
1 sphere; compound interest, cube root and its
applications; equation Of payments, exchange.
| similar surfaces metric system, compound pro-
portion and compound partnership-are all to be
| omitted from the course of study. This will,
| inde.d, be q revolution, but wise and timely
one The purpose of the public schools is to fit
the pupils for the ordinary business Of life. and
not one in a Thousand finds any practical use for
arithmetical knowledge that goes beyond the
first four rules. fractions and interest The
eument that the study is valuable as a mental
discipline, is one that hardly holds good consid-
ering the amount of absolutely essential knowl-
edge that must be crowded into youthful brains
during the school course, and the acquisition of
which furnishes all the needful discipline"
The Boston reform is one that might well be
adopted in Indianapolis.
A RECENT decision of the Supreme Court Of
Georgia makes Miss Amanda Eubanks the
wealthiest young colored woman in the United
States. The decision sustans the will of one
David Dickson, white planter who died a
bachelor, leaving an estate worth several hun
dred thousand dollars. and many white relatives
anxious for his property. They were disguised
as well as disappointed when they discovered
that he left a will in which seven-eiehths of his
possessions wer. left to a colored woman and
| her daughter, Amanda. A fight was made
the will. the principal point made being that it
was opposed to public policy to permit white
to dispose of his property to his colored illa-
climate child. The Supreme Court rules that
the negroes have the same civil rights white
people and that the will must stand.
HERE is a remarkable fact, and something for
natives Of Connecticut to point to with pride
Prof Alexander Johnston states in his recent
| history Of Connecticut, contributed to the Amer
.can Common wealth Series, that single county,
Lirchfeld has been the birthplace of thirteen
United States Senator's, twenty two Representa-
tives from New York, fifteen Supreme Court
Judges in other States, nine presidents of col
leges and eighteen other professors and eleven
Governors and Lieutenant governors of States.
The remark is attributed to Calhoun that he had
seen the time when the members of Congress